Personally talking about a quite long journey (out of town/out of country), I enjoy the excitement before the journey begins, the imagination of what will happen next and what will I see there, beside of all the plans that I already had in my head. This moment is one special moment of the whole traveling itself. I have never felt completely prepared for a journey to be honest. Even though I love traveling, I really hate packing. I never packed my things and felt so ready before going to bed, and about to have a journey on the next day. I have always met this situation when I have no time left to be ready or to think what I have been forgotten to bring, but at that moment, I have to go. Yeah, now I do realize, I have never felt 100 percent ready for a journey when I started it.
On the way (by car/motorbike/bus/train/ship/plane) is another moment. This is when the excitement lessen, I usually become more relax yet the name of the place (e,g., Jakarta) sticks in my head all the time. The closer I get to the destination, the lesser I feel excited. It is being replaced by the fact that I'm actually in "this place" (Jakarta) and I will find myself exploring the new environment, the reality in front of my eyes.
On the new places itself, honestly it is the most ordinary moment in the whole trip. Maybe it is because I can't imagine it anymore, I'm facing the reality that (Jakarta) is like this, it's not like what I have been imagined it would be. And most importantly, there's no time to even imagine it. I will be busy looking here and there, asking this and that, and answering my curiosity. It is the reality, what can make you feel excited about it. You can only feel sad/happy about the reality, you feel excited about what you imagine it will be.
Next, is on the way back. This is the saddest moment of the whole traveling, I must say. On the way back home, no matter how long the trips are, I will suddenly feel that it is not enough. I would feel that "oh, I should go ......, oh I should do ......., oh I should stay longer". Once I am on the bus/train/plane I would be quiet and recall all the activities I have done along the journey, including the excitement in the beginning of it.
